Abstract

Klebsiella
, a
Gram
-
negative
bacterium accounts for most of the nosocomial infections.
Resistance to carbapenem class of antibiotics in
Klebsiella
further adds complexity to the
issue as they are considered “antibiotics of last resort”. Cell surface associated
glycoconjugates are one
of the major virulence traits of
Gram
-
negative
bacteria of which
c
apsular polysaccharides (CPS/K antigen) and
l
ipopolysaccharides (LPS) are of prime
importance in
Klebsiella
. Both antigens contain repeating units of sugars with high
variability. Targeting
such antigens would require adequate knowledge of the composition
and three dimensional structures. Herein
,
we provide a repository
, K
-
PAM
(
A
Klebsiella
Serotype Predi
ctor and Capsular Antigen Model
er
)
for
modeled three
dimensional structures of K, O antigens and genetic loci information of the proteins
involved in the synthesis and export of K antigens.
K
-
PAM features a serotype predictor
tool (based on NCBI Blast programmes), that could be helpful in iden
tifying serotype of
new strains.
K
-
PAM
also provides options for generation of multimer of the K antigen
which could be used as model systems for development of drugs against these multidrug
resistant bacteria
and the
database
of
Klebsiella
antigens has been made accessible
through
www.iith.ac.in/
K
-
PAM
/
.
Wzi, an outer membrane protein has been reported to bind the capsular polysaccharide
onto the outer membrane
of Gram
-
negative bacteria
. Targeting the interaction between
the protein and the antigen could pave way for novel antibacterial strategies. In this
context, Wzi is
cloned and protocol is optimized for purification of the protein
in
denaturing and non
-
denaturing conditions
.